Published 7:00 pm, Friday, August 14, 2009

The Lady Dogs and first-year head coach Tori Hatch travel to Levelland on Monday to play the Loboettes in the season-opener. Action starts with the freshmen and junior varsity at 5:30 p.m. followed by the varsity at 6:30.

Then on Tuesday the Lady Dogs are off to Amarillo to face Caprock beginning at 6 and 7:30 p.m.

Plainview did get some time on its home floor in a scrimmage on Friday when they took on Levelland and Trinity. They followed that up with another scrimmage in Wolfforth on Saturday against Monterey and Lubbock High.

Unofficially, since scores don't count in scrimmages, Hatch said, Plainview won every match.

That's not too much of a surprise for Hatch since the Lady Dogs lost only one player, graduated senior Lindsay Barton, off last year's team that finished third in District 4-4A and reached the playoffs for the third straight season, losing in bi-district to fifth-ranked Canyon Randall in straight sets.

Nine players, including five starters, return off that 17-10 team, including seniors Abby King and Ashley Welch. King, a three-year letter winner, was named first-team all-district at outside hitter while Welch was voted the district's outstanding libero.

The other three returning starters are all juniors. Setter/right side hitter Emily Welch was second-team all-district while middle hitter Sydney Hearn earned honorable mention honors. Kassie Schafer, a right side hitter/setter, rounds out the returning starters.